Moving On
by Sophie The Shipper
Summary: Inspired by 'Moving On' by Kodaline. Penny and Leonard lose each other, what will happen in the in-between? Read to find out! [One-Shot]


**Summary:** _Penny and Leonard break up. One moves on, the other gets stuck in the past. What will happen?_ **  
** **Word Count:** _2155  
_ **Disclaimer** _: I don't own The Big Bang Theory or the characters, nor the song that was used as a background for the story. 'Moving On' by Kodaline, which was also used as a title for the story._

* * *

They didn't last long. On a cold winter afternoon, when the cold breeze made her chilly, she ran to her car with tears streaming down her face, almost freezing from the cold. She was the one that broke it off, not really accepting the fact someone cared and wanted to be with her. She was scared of hurting him in the long run, of doing something that would hurt them both deeply. But as soon as she left him, she was already hurt and regretful.

She didn't know where to go, home – a concept she no longer knew what it was – or anywhere else. She went to her apartment, but as soon as she entered, she only felt _his_ presence. She got ready for work and went to her car. Driving around town for a while, she eventually passed The Cheesecake Factory. She entered it and said nothing to the people there. She wasn't interested in anyone's dates, boyfriends or other subjects she used to give a crap about.

Her shift ended quickly, _him_ the only thing on her mind. She already missed him and, unlike any other moment in the near past, she wasn't missing him like those other times. Not those 'I miss you' but I'll see you at dinner tonight and give you a kiss. Not those 'I miss you' that was sweet. This 'I miss you' was messy, dirty, and awful. It was like one of them had died, and maybe it did. Her heart, it wasn't beating like it used to. It used to beat for him, in a weird way. _He_ was the one thing that helped her go through those hard shifts that she needed so that she could pay rent. So that she could keep living near him.

But now, her heart was suffering because of what she did. It was all her fault and she knew. But she missed _him_. Terribly.

And so did _he_. _He_ missed _her_. Desperately.

He had tears in his eyes. Aside from a few friends and an obnoxious roommate, she was all that kept him there. She was his armor against the bad in the world, what kept him grounded. She always made sure he had a place to land when he was done with the world inside his own head. She was his lifesaver. So, without thinking more than once, he wrote a letter explaining why he was leaving and apologizing for any inconvenience. Booking a ticket to go back to New Jersey, he saw his desktop photo: a picture of them. They were both smiling, they were happy in that picture. Soon after, the photo became cloudy.

Removing his glasses and pushing the tears aside, he changed the picture to his old one, a photo of Superman. Someone that had been brave enough to be someone else in order to save the world. A superhero, someone _he_ wasn't.

With the ticket bought and some items on his bag, he leaves the apartment he had lived at for the last few years. He looked at her door just in front of his. If he closed his eyes, he could still remember the moment he got back from the North Pole, the way her eyes twinkled when she saw him, the hug, the way her body melted in his. He could still smell her perfume in the air if he thought long enough.

He opened his eyes, not being able to think about her anymore. It was hurting way to much.

He climbed down those stairs and entered his car, without looking back.

* * *

When she climbed up those stairs she was thinking of just getting inside her apartment, open a bottle of wine, drink it while watching Friends until she eventually fell asleep. She did not, at any moment, though she would have to go to _his_ apartment.

She first heard the yelling at the beginning of the fourth flight of stairs. Thinking it was her crazy friend yelling at _him_ because of the thermostat, she thought nothing of it. But by the time she arrived at the door, she saw it opening and two of her friends left. Her short friend with a Beatles-like haircut and her Indian non-speaking-to-women friend. They both looked at her with a disgusted face. She asked what was wrong, they didn't answer.

She entered the apartment only to see one of her best friends cry. It was unusual to see this, to out-of-character for him. She touched his shoulder as to warn him she was there and also to console him. He looked away from her and ran to his room. She didn't know what was happening. She stood looking at the bathroom door for a couple of moments until she looked around the room. Everything was in place, except for _his_ laptop. Instead, there were a number of papers on top of the place it used to be the laptop. She noticed on with her name so she picked that one up. Opening it, she sat down at _his_ chair, being one of the most comfortable she ever was at – without counting _his_ bed or _his_ lap.

 _Dear Penny,_

 _I'm sorry I'm doing this, but I just can't stay here while seeing you every day. It pains me to do this because I'm leaving everything behind. I love you, and nothing will ever change that. But I can't stay there watching you be with other guys. I just can't._

 _I hope you can understand why I'm doing this. If you want me to explain better or simply talk from time to time, I don't mind. We can still be friends, even though we're not together. I promise to try and be in your life. I'll honestly try. I know this is a small letter, but I needed to just say sorry for leaving without talking about it directly and you know I'm not much of a person to talk face to face._

 _Love,_

 _Leonard._

She cried when she finished reading the letter. Realizing the guys blamed her for _his_ departure, she knew she couldn't just stay there. But she couldn't just go back to Nebraska. Sucking up her ego, she remained in that apartment building, waiting for _him_ to come back home.

They spoke to each other. Every now and then, they would catch up, they would talk about _his_ work and _her_ auditions. They wouldn't mention _him_ leaving or their break up. It would just open old wounds, and none of them needed that.

They wouldn't talk about things like ' _I have a date tonight'_ , or ' _I might be engaged by the end of this week'._

It had taken them two years, but the dreaded day arrived. It was a warm autumn afternoon on the day of their last text. Penny still remembers the text, she holds down to that text with everything she had.

It was a simple, uncomplicated text, unlike their relationship. It was a simple, perfect, _Good Night._

It was night for _him_ , after all. She didn't respond, she didn't like to, she always felt like it was like saying goodbye. And it had been.

For the next two decades, they didn't speak. She knew he got married through Sheldon, who got the invitation through the mail. He attended it with Amy, his girlfriend-that-wasn't-just-a-friend-anymore. Howard went with Bernadette that finally agreed to be his girlfriend. Raj invited her, but it was just weird to be at your ex's wedding.

She got all the details of _his_ wife later, through Amy and Bernadette. She was short, like _him_ , didn't wear glasses and had a Ph.D. in something she couldn't for the life of her remember. She also loved his nerdy things and would go to comic book stores and buy more comics than him. They started a collection together, making sure they would spend less money on those things. She was everything _she_ hadn't been, and _he_ was probably happy with her.

That was two years after his farewell from the building and _her_ life. Her one shot of happiness left that day and was now married.

Only a year later she discovered, through Sheldon once again, that _he_ was going to be a father.

She was happy for him, to discover he had moved on.

A few months later, a Ryan Stephen Hofstadter welcomed the world. She had known at least one of _his_ kids would be named after a scientist and he had chosen Stephen Hawking. But it should've been her to have a child named after a scientist. It should've been her, but she was stupid and allowed him to go.

She smiled at the picture Bernadette had shown her of baby Ryan, with his black hair, a little curly, and his big brown eyes.

He looked like a miniature Leonard. Which made her miss him even more and hate her even deeper.

After twenty years since his separation from her life and three kids later, _his_ wife got sick. She died a few years later, not being able to survive the illness anymore. By that time, their youngest was already in college so Leonard moved back. He stayed with his best friend and his wife and children for a few weeks until he moved into _his_ own place. She hadn't seen him yet. She didn't move on from their breakup, was only with people to get away from the pain she was constantly feeling in her heart. She missed _him_ and never forgot _him_.

And as she walked that street, she swore to see _him_ , looking at a menu. Getting closer and closer, she realized **it was** _him_. He had grey hair and a few wrinkles but it was still him. His hand was probably warm enough to heat hers, in that cold spring morning. It was an unusual day, especially for the season, they were in. She had on multiple layers of clothes and upon seeing him, she longed for _his_ warm skin against hers, hoping he was still the same person. But he probably wasn't anymore, especially after what had happened to his wife. His partner in life. The one that should've been _her_.

Touching his shoulder for him to pay attention to her, he looked at her. She had aged amazingly, like a fine wine that is correctly bottled and stored. He smiled, and she smiled back. He hugged her, making him remember his departure all those decades ago when he tried to forget about her. It took him a year to even consider going out. Six months later he found someone perfect for him. She was also trying to forget about someone, escape the claws of love. They fell for each other, hard, and it was soon that they got married and had kids. They didn't want to waste time, and so they didn't.

She had made sure he was happy after her passing. Maybe that meant talking to _her_. That would probably make him happy. He felt a warm feeling in his chest, probably joy. He wasn't sure about what it was. But _her_ smile was inviting, and it irradiated happiness.

He invited her for coffee, and opened the door to her, making him remember doing that to his wife. Sadness passed over his features, but he tried to put those feelings aside.

They sat down near the window, watching the city life outside. When they were young, they would both be living in that city, and be a part of that life. But now, as they grew old, they were just people watching others live the life they already had.

They didn't talk, as the waitress gave them their coffees. They just smiled and toasted with their warm cups of coffee. Their cold throat appreciated the warm feeling of the coffee and their cold hands were loving the feeling of heat irradiating from the coffee.

Their eyes eventually crossed paths. A small smile appeared on their faces. He was the first to speak just like their first encounter. That awkward first encounter. The moment he had probably fallen in love with her. His letter, given to her so long ago, it seemed on another lifetime, had said he would always love her, no matter what. _Did he mean it? Did he still love her?_ God knew she loved him more than anything in the world. _Would they have a second chance at love? Or would she still be scared?_ She remembers all the night she was scared and didn't have _his_ arms around _her_ , protecting _her_ from the horrors of the world. _He_ was probably protecting the other woman, the one he loved unconditionally for two decades. She looked at _him_ and knew. They would be okay. And that was what mattered.

"So, how have you been?" He said as that little smile played on his lips.

 _That goodnight, she realized, hadn't been a goodbye. Just a see you later._

* * *

 **The End**

Thanks for reading. This story had been on my mind for the last few days, so I needed to get it out of my head. I'll probably focus on writing One-Shots now, can't get myself to write my other multi-chapter stories. Sorry!

Anyway, hope you like this story!


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